Something really odd is happening to me. I registered in Switzerland at the middle of November and signed with an health insurance company (one of the top brands) for basic health insurance for me and my family at the beginning of December. On December 23rd, whilst I was on holiday back home, the insurance agent called me saying that in the papers there was a signature missing. He returned the modules to me and I forwarded the signed papers at the beginning of January. Since then nothing occurred. I called the agent and he was not available so I left a voice message that he did not return to me. I called the insurance company hotline and they told me that everything is OK but they have a huge workload and they need some time to work out the policy for me. At the middle of February my 3 months "bonus" is expiring, I have not paid any insurance yet and paid my doctor's bills by cash so far. What shall I do? Shall I trust this company for the future? Anything similar happened to you when arriving in Switzerland? And in case of an emergency? Am I covered or not? The insurer says yes, shall I trust his word as I do not have any document assessing this?

You will be okay. It can take time to process so it's not that odd. Coverage (and premium) will be back dated so your costs will be covered. Just keep the bills and proof of payment. Of course you have to "eat" through your excess first before the insurance company will start to reimburse you.

When you have an insurance in CH they normally send you a membership card (same size as a credit card) to show that you are insured. If you dont have this after about 2 - 3 weeks of sending the signed application again its better to check again with the insurer. This card can be shown at Pharmacy /Apothek when you get the medicine for a docs prescription and the cost will be forarded to the insurer. Also when an emergency occurs its better to have this card at hand

I know I should receive the card, but at least want an insurance number. But nothing is occurring so far. They say everything is ok and that processing the paperwork takes time. I am worried for 1. if an emergency occurs as I have a 10 months old baby, 2. what will the bill look like when I finally get it?, 3. How long it will take to process reimboursement each time I need one?
Has anyone faced a similar situation with health insurance?

Eating through the excess is the hardest thing . But if you are going to the docs / hospital quite often its better to get a policy with lower excess.

I dont know what to say about your first two questions . This will mainly depend on the insurance company. Its better to call them again and explain your situation. But to get the refund of what you have paid more than excess will take about 3 weeks after sending all the bills. This too depends on who you are insured with.

In a word, yes! We applied for health insurance at the start of August directly with one of the major health insurers here. I am not too sure what the policy is in this area of the forum regarding naming companies so lets just say that they were one of the cheaper offerings but still received a reasonable review score. I did not hear anything from the insurance company until mid October when they confirmed receipt of our application and said to expect our health insurance cards "within the next 4-6 weeks". Shortly thereafter I received a demand for payment dated back to time of registration with the Gemeinde (as per Swiss law blah blah). Paid this and waited. And waited. Then I sent an email at the start of January as we had still not received our medical cards and said I was not paying another premium until we did. Received the cards 4 days later.

All in all pretty disappointing but got there in the end. We've not had to use the insurance yet (touch wood) so can't report on what they are like paying out.

Sounds like you might be with the same company. So, to answer one of your questions, it took 5 months to receive our insurance cards.

If you had an emergency before your card comes through then just call the insurance company and explain. In all likelihood they will expedite your paperwork or come to some other arrangement if you are faced with a big bill.
You really don't need to worry. You and your family are already covered and the insurance company has explained that everything is in the works so if it was me, I wouldn't keep calling. The delay and the response from the insurer is quite normal.

Concerning your other questions about the billing process, when I visit the family doctor he sends me an itemised bill and a post office payment slip. I pay the bill at the post office, then attach the stamped receipt to the original bill and send it off to the insurance company. Usually I get reimbursed in three weeks. If I need drugs the pharmacy where I'm registered never bills me direct but claims direct from the insurer. Once or twice I've got my drugs from another pharmacy so I pay the bill and send the receipt to the insurance company. I've only once been treated in a hospital and they also claimed direct from the insurer.

For a supplement we have paid for worldwide cover. I've simply paid the overseas doctor's bill and any drug prescription charges and on my return to Switzerland I've sent them off with receipts to the insurance company. Again, the amounts were reimbursed with no problems within three weeks.

Apparently in Switzerland they are not as time efficient as I would have expected. Let's wait and see. Thanks for reassuring me.